Enceladus Ocean
Enceladus Ocean
I've already discussed this moon of Saturn, but recent data revealed a massive ocean beneath the surface of this moon, a discovery that could mean that there's life there.
Cassini Mission probe data revealed that Enceladus has a slight wobble as it orbits Saturn, which means that the icy surface is not too thick and that there is liquid water beneath it. The other data that indicates this consists of the discovery of water plumes and organic material coming from fissures in the surface. These could only be coming from a hidden ocean. This data comes from seven years of scans as Cassini orbited Saturn. This allowed scientists to measure the wobble of Enceladus over a long period.
Enceladus's ocean is estimated to be 6 miles deep and it lies about 19 to 24 miles beneath a frozen crust. Enceladus is believed to have a rocky core, essentially made out of silicates.
Most of the water plumes occur from the South pole of Enceladus. They're much like geysers on Earth. There are salts within the water vapor of these plumes.
Although these geysers could originate from small pools of water, the consensus is that they come from a massive salty ocean that could harbor life. One thing to keep in mind is that Eenceladus is small. Its radius is only 156.6 miles.
This isn't the only moon with an ocean. Jupiter's moon, Europa, also contains a subterranean ocean that could be larger than that under the surface of Enceladus. Unfortunately, the icy crust of Europa is 10 miles thick. However, water plumes have been observed coming from Europa, so in many ways it's similar to Enceladus. The water in these plumes is also salty in nature, suggesting a vast ocean under Europa's surface.
The good news about all of this is that NASA is planning to send probes to both Enceladus and Europa. I can't wait to see what they find.
Thanks for reading.
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